Have you heard of EDM? EDM stands for Electric Dance Music and I invite you to watch a video that will give you an idea of what EDM looks like in a church setting.
Interested? Do you think this kind of music is acceptable in a worship setting?
A diaconal minister in the United Church of Canada (UCC), Charlotte Caron, wrote a book called, “Eager for Worship: Theologies, Practices, and Perspectives on Worship in the United Church of Canada.” She offered a couple of quotes from other sources. The first is out of the UCC’s “Voices United” hymnbook, in the introduction:
Hymns have always had a central place in the making of Christians. For many, next to scripture, a hymnal is the church’s most important sourcebook. It is from hymns that many receive their primary and most enduring theological education.
Music, for thousands of years, has been a way of teaching people, whether it be the stories of their people, a recipe, directions from one place to the next, morality and ethics, or theology. Words set to music or poetry tend to stick in our brains, especially when we learn them at a young age. The words in the music, the lyrics, are what keep us learning and growing in our faith and they are an expression of ourselves and our ministry. But does it matter how these words are expressed, the style of music? For example, is EDM acceptable as a way of teaching theology in our worship services?
What’s acceptable in worship has changed a lot over the years. There was a time when women were not allowed to speak in church, which included singing. When missionaries were bringing Christianity to global communities, the indigenous instruments of the area were banned. Indigenous people in North America were not allowed to include drums in their worship. Every so often, a new style of music comes into the culture, folk music, country music, jazz music, and when the style is then introduced in a worship setting, there is usually pushback.
It takes a long time for traditionalists in churches to deem new music acceptable in a church setting. You can see that today in contemporary praise music. When worship bands plays modern praise music in a more traditional setting, there are some who struggle with it. The drums, guitar, and tambourine are sometimes seen as inappropriate in a church setting.
The UCC has a supplement hymnbook called, “More Voices.” This was meant to offer some more recent alternatives to what is in the “Voices United.” You won’t find anything in there that was written before the 1990’s and 30% of it is global content, outside of the US and Canada. Many of the pieces have a more contemporary rhythm and setting. Many United Church congregations don’t find the hymns compatible because it’s not what they’re used to hearing. For some, the rhythms are too complicated or the combination of notes just sound strange.
So why bother? If we’re happy with our traditional hymns, why fix what isn’t broken? Caron shares another quote from her book, from Ed Searcy, from his article, “Passing on the Tradition to our Children.” He writes:
In his study of Canadian teens, Reginald Bibby has pointed out that, after peers, adolescents place music as the second most important influence in their life. When asked, young adults who are active in the church consistently rank church music (and especially church organs) as one of their greatest frustrations. Passing on the tradition to generations of children and young people whose lives are filled with the energy of popular music means finding creative ways to open our doors to their melodies and rhythms.
Caron writes that as a church we are challenged to find space for a variety of tastes of music that will enliven faith at every life stage.
Electric Dance Music may not work for everyone. If you’ll notice in the video, it is all young people attending. I doubt the service is happening at 10am on a Sunday morning. This is aimed at young adults who go to clubs with this kind of music. This is aimed at young people who have lots of energy and want to praise God with a beat, and a hard rhythm, and by moving their bodies. This might not be how some want to worship, but it definitely feels right for them.
Most know that when a drum, a guitar, a strong beat, are brought into worship, it might cause people to move and maybe even dance. Is it appropriate? Sure! They are dancing and praising God with their whole bodies. They are hearing the music and they are absorbing the theology of the words that are sung. By offering a variety of music, we allow our young people to hear music to which they can connect, and sometimes not just the young people, especially if we are still only using music from hundreds of years ago that we don’t hear in our every day lives anymore.
I’m not saying that we stop playing traditional hymns. I’m not saying everyone should start an electric dance club during worship. I am saying we need to be able to offer a variety of sounds for a variety of people, especially if we want to be inclusive, welcoming, affirming, and open to the world around us. An alternate worship service that offers EDM is definitely a possibility if someone feels called to do so, but in the meantime, acceptance and openness to all kinds of styles of music is necessary.
Psalm 150, the last of the psalms in the bible, mentions all kinds of instrumentation, from trumpet sounds, to tambourines, to loud clashing cymbals, and ends with “Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!” Everything that breathes. Not just the professional musicians or long time church members. Everything that breathes. Which means a variety of styles and sounds.
I think we have to be very careful to label something as unacceptable or inappropriate if it inspires someone, moves them, and brings them closer to God. So let’s have an organ and a drum. Let’s have Beethoven and the Beatles. Let’s be moved to tears by a stirring melody or inspired to dance by a driving beat. If it’s inspiring us to praise God and love our neighbour, what could be better? May it be so. Amen.
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